1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to safety locks for guns. More particularly, the invention concerns a safety device for a hand-held weapon which disables the weapon until a personalized code key is inserted into the handle of the weapon to operate the safety device in a manner to permit the weapon to be fired.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
There has long been a need for some type of tamper-proof safety device which will prevent the unauthorized firing of weapons such as hand guns. For example, police records are replete with instances of children accidentally firing hand guns which have been carelessly left about by their relatives and parents of their playmates. Such instances often result in the children critically injuring themselves or others. Similarly, private citizens as well as law enforcement officers will, on occasion, have their weapons fall into the hands of an unauthorized person who will use the weapon in the perpetration of serious crimes.
In an effort to prevent unauthorized firing of weapons, many types of safety devices have been suggested. One such prior art device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,467,545 issued to Shaw, Jr. This device comprises a hand-held weapon that is fitted with a safety device which is responsive to the palm or finger print of one or more individuals. The safety device is activated by heat sensors when the device is held in the hand of the user. Unless the palm or finger print of the person holding the device matches a pre-stored pattern, a blocking safety mechanism, which normally prevents operation of the weapon, is maintained in its blocking state and the weapon will not fire.
Another prior art safety locking mechanism is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,016,376 issued to Pugh. The safety mechanism of the Pugh invention includes a solenoid which controllably actuates or deactuates upon an application of an electrical signal. A decoder is mounted within the weapon for detecting a signal from an authorized user and selectively activates the solenoid upon receiving an appropriate signal from the authorized user. A linkage connects the solenoid and the firing mechanism of the weapon for controllably enabling or disenabling the weapon upon operation of the solenoid.
Still another safety system for disenabling a firearm is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,682,435 issued to Hetzel. The Hetzel safety system includes a mechanical linkage by which the firearm is fired as a result of movement of the trigger. This mechanical linkage includes a specially designed link element. A link mounting means is then provided for mounting this link element within the gun for movement between a position wherein the mechanical linkage is interrupted and a position wherein the mechanical linkage is functional. A link moving means is provided for moving the link element between the interrupted position and the functional position. The safety system further includes a remotely controlled actuating means for actuating the link moving means. This actuating means includes a transmitter for selectively transmitting a gun disabling signal. The transmitter is designed to be carried by the authorized operator of the firearm. A receiver is then located adjacent the link moving means for receiving the signal from the transmitter and for operating the link moving means.
A drawback of many of the prior art safety systems for disabling firearms is that the safety systems tend to be rather complex, difficult and expensive to manufacture and, on occasion, do not exhibit the requisite reliability of operation. These and other drawbacks of the prior art systems are overcome by the novel security system of the present invention which, as will become apparent from the discussions which follows, is of simple design, involves a minimum number of moving parts, and is highly reliable in operation.